Former Orioles third baseman Jeff Manto will be inducted into the International League Hall of Fame this year, the league announced Tuesday. The Orioles hired the 49-year-old Manto as the organization's minor league hitting coordinator in November. Manto batted .256 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs in 89 games for the Orioles in 1995, his only season with the team. He hit .275 with 125 home runs with seven different International League teams between 1992 and 2000. He was the League's Most Valuable Player in 1994.

Eight games is not a large sample size, so we can't go overboard with this. It's possible that by the time the postseason rolls around, Alejandro De Aza will have fallen back to earth and to mere mortal numbers as an Oriole. But for now, De Aza, the left-handed-hitting outfielder the Orioles acquired from the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 30, has exceeded all expectations. Perhaps more importantly, he has been exactly what the Orioles were missing: a left-handed-hitting outfielder who can get on base consistently and do some damage once he's there.

When he was at Sunset Elementary School in Pasadena, Glynn Davis was the fastest runner in his class. He recalls that the school held a field day every year, and he was never defeated in the 100-yard dash. Davis, 22, is using that speed as a center fielder for the Frederick Keys, the Orioles' Single-A Advanced farm team in the Carolina League. "As far as I can remember, I have been a fast guy," said Davis, a graduate of Northeast High School. "That is what I have modeled my game after.

Jeff Manto, OriolesHis five worst places to play baseball:1. Waterloo, Iowa: Everything was bad about that place. You name it, it was bad.2. Davenport, Iowa: The field was a mess when I was there.3. Detroit: The facilities are horrendous.4. El Paso, Texas: The announcer there would drive you absolutely crazy.5. Syracuse, N.Y.: The whole stadium needed to be torn down. They need to blow up everything in that stadium.

In the dugout: Leo Gomez got his second straight start on the strength of his four-RBI performance Saturday. "His reputation is when he gets hot, he's hot," manager Phil Regan said beforehand. "I'm hoping that like the weather, he's hot." Gomez flied to center and grounded back to the pitcher yesterday. Look for Jeff Manto to return tonight.On the field: Rafael Palmeiro has turned around his 0-for-25 drought with style. He's 5-for-12 since then,including two home runs in the Kansas City series.

The Orioles aren't the only organization under construction at the moment. Orange cones are being placed around the Pittsburgh Pirates, who fired manager Jim Tracy and senior director of player development Brian Graham, among others. If Graham's name sounds familiar, he was part of manager Mike Hargrove's coaching staff, but only for a brief period. Graham was relegated to being an eye-in-the-sky from the press box because the Orioles had too many field coaches, and Eddie Murray wasn't going to budge off first base.

Former Orioles third baseman Jeff Manto will be inducted into the International League Hall of Fame this year, the league announced Tuesday. The Orioles hired the 49-year-old Manto as the organization's minor league hitting coordinator in November. Manto batted .256 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs in 89 games for the Orioles in 1995, his only season with the team. He hit .275 with 125 home runs with seven different International League teams between 1992 and 2000. He was the League's Most Valuable Player in 1994.

The annual Silver Slugger Awards will be announced at 6 p.m. tonight on MLB Network, and the Orioles should be well represented. The awards are decided by a vote of major league managers and coaches, and lean heavily toward run-production numbers. Orioles first baseman Chris Davis might be an underdog for the American League Most Valuable Player Award, but it's safe to say he's a favorite to win a Silver Slugger at first base. He led the major leagues in 2013 in home runs (53)

The Orioles have hired Jeff Manto -- who played third base for the Orioles in 1995 -- to be the organization's new minor league hitting coordinator, the club announced Tuesday. For the past two seasons, Manto was the hitting coach for the Chicago White Sox. Manto will replace Mike Boulanger, who will move to a role in the organization's amateur and pro scouting department by his owen choice. Manto, who played parts of nine major league seasons with eight different teams, had his best year in 1995 with the Orioles, hitting .256/.325/.492 with 17 home runs and 37 RBIs in 254 at-bats.

The Orioles aren't the only organization under construction at the moment. Orange cones are being placed around the Pittsburgh Pirates, who fired manager Jim Tracy and senior director of player development Brian Graham, among others. If Graham's name sounds familiar, he was part of manager Mike Hargrove's coaching staff, but only for a brief period. Graham was relegated to being an eye-in-the-sky from the press box because the Orioles had too many field coaches, and Eddie Murray wasn't going to budge off first base.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Every spring, it's the same refrain: Boy, the Orioles' lineup looks great. This team will hit, that's for sure.Then the season starts.And, inevitably, the offense fails to deliver.Overrating your club is a rite of spring -- not just in Baltimore, but every major-league city.Why should this spring be different?Well, the Orioles added an offensive-oriented manager, a hitting coach whose teams won two batting titles and, last but not least, two .300 hitters.L Their attack could be as potent as Boston's and Cleveland's.

As a first-year manager, Phil Regan had his share of problems with his players. Ben McDonald clashed with him about pitching out of the bullpen. Kevin Brown tossed him the ball after a bad nTC outing. Veteran players bristled at Regan's idea of changing the bunt plays in spring training.Not all of the 1995 Orioles, however, have hard feelings.Just ask the rookie, the career minor-leaguer and the major-league veteran.They're at different stages of their careers, but Greg Zaun, Jeff Manto and Kevin Bass have one thing in common -- their loyalty to Regan for giving them a chance.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Just three weeks ago today, Bobby Bonilla played his first game with the Orioles and the prevailing question was not whether the O's could catch the Red Sox -- that was the easy part -- but whether they could hold off the hated Yankees.The Orioles were 4 1/2 games out of first place that day. After last night's 8-4 win over Oakland, they were 15 games out of first as they they began a 10-game road trip on the West Coast that could, for all intents and purposes, end their season.